FeatherWriter she/her Posted January 24, 2014 Posted January 24, 2014 *makes the I'm watching you motion* ... *gives an upvote anyway*
Natans he/him Posted January 24, 2014 Posted January 24, 2014 Good catch, Marian! Ship confirmed! All you losers who ship Adolin/Renarin and Shallan, looks like our boy Kal is about to steal a third and take home! Also, I really like how Kaladin is done here. Now, I know some of you may say different, but I don't think he's handsome. However, those hazel eyes of his are real pretty. Lighteyes be damnation, those are the very definition of a puppy dog gaze. This man can attract a lot of ladies with the right look. Bold =) But nay, Sly never would approve puppy owner and Kaladin. 1
Ironeyes Posted January 24, 2014 Posted January 24, 2014 A curse upon whomever decided to bring the word "ship" into the vocabulary of this fandom. I get annoyed enough at my HP and PJO fandom-people using it. I will find you. I will load you into a cannon on the deck of a pirate ship boat. And I will use incredible Dustbringer powers to light the fuse. 3
JesseQ Posted January 24, 2014 Posted January 24, 2014 I don't know if I agree with you Feather. Not that I care about Kal's pigmentation but to me in the original version he almost looks Native American. In the final version he sort of resembles someone of southern European decent; Italian or Spanish or Greek. So I'm not sure if he gets less white. Ultimately, I could care less but I really like the fact that he looks his age now; major improvements overall.
PorridgeBrick he/him Posted January 24, 2014 Posted January 24, 2014 I hope it is a scene like this: Kaladin doing that would be awesome. If it is a landing, it's an exceedingly moronic one. Notice how the lines of force all stem from his fist? To do that, he would have had to land almost entirely on his fist. Now, I don't fly very often, but slamming into the ground at several gravities worth of velocity on only your fist seems to me an extremely easy way to break things. Badly. Not only that, but I'm pretty sure he's throwing a bad punch, which can break your hand at normal velocities. His wrist is very strongly flexed outwards, so even a little force would push it beyond its normal range of motion.
Botanica she/her Posted January 24, 2014 Posted January 24, 2014 The revised one is as awesome as expected! With the largest resolution more details can be seen! *o* Can't decide which one to set as the wallpaper... Kaladin or Shallan??? 2
FeatherWriter she/her Posted January 24, 2014 Posted January 24, 2014 I don't know if I agree with you Feather. Not that I care about Kal's pigmentation but to me in the original version he almost looks Native American. In the final version he sort of resembles someone of southern European decent; Italian or Spanish or Greek. So I'm not sure if he gets less white. Ultimately, I could care less but I really like the fact that he looks his age now; major improvements overall. I mean, it's not as great as I'd like on the "not-white" front, but it's better than I was expecting, to be honest. I could almost see him as being from the Middle East and tell myself that it's a light trick and that his skin is properly Alethi tan. And I could... maybe see epicanthic folds on his eyes? Maybe? *sigh* I headcanon Kaladin looking a lot like Exmakina's portrayal or Botanica Xu's. Both of them are fantastic artists and so dedicated to being accurate and it really shows. At this point, I'm almost just glad that he actually looks like a 19 year old. EDIT: SPEAKING OF BOTANICA, THERE SHE IS, NINJAING HER WAY IN ABOVE ME! 2
Chrono she/her Posted January 24, 2014 Posted January 24, 2014 Dang that looks awesome! I really love how Kaladin looks more like in his twenties, yet he still has that worn out look: bags under the eyes, slight wrinkles, etc. It makes him look so much more lifelike. I had never seen the second cover. Um, uh... I just won't say anything. Michael Whelan is a great artist, but those first two drafts... O.o. But, yes, a remarkable improvement! Congrats to all those who contributed to the beautiful cover! You did a smashing job, and I'm more excited than ever to get my shiny copy on March 4th. Right after I take the ACT. A welcome break from that ordeal.
PorridgeBrick he/him Posted January 24, 2014 Posted January 24, 2014 I mean, it's not as great as I'd like on the "not-white" front, but it's better than I was expecting, to be honest. I could almost see him as being from the Middle East and tell myself that it's a light trick and that his skin is properly Alethi tan. And I could... maybe see epicanthic folds on his eyes? Maybe? *sigh* I headcanon Kaladin looking a lot like Exmakina's portrayal or Botanica Xu's. Both of them are fantastic artists and so dedicated to being accurate and it really shows. At this point, I'm almost just glad that he actually looks like a 19 year old. EDIT: SPEAKING OF BOTANICA, THERE SHE IS, NINJAING HER WAY IN ABOVE ME! I do have to agree with JesseQ. Kaladin is 100% white here, which kinda bothers me now that it's been brought up. Darker skinned characters, particularly protagonists, are so rare in fantasy that it's really a shame he's been white-washed here. Ultimately, it doesn't really make a difference to who he is, but it still would add some diversity to the genre. 1
don_karma_II he/him Posted January 24, 2014 Posted January 24, 2014 Could it be that the whole art is the moment when Kaladin speaks up the third ideal? With the sky opening up and all. Szeth standing on top of a pile of dead bodies is a bit too cartoonish IMHO.
+eveorjoy she/her Posted January 24, 2014 Posted January 24, 2014 Maybe Kaladin has just flown back from Urithiru, just in time to save the day.
Pinpoint he/him Posted January 24, 2014 Posted January 24, 2014 (edited) Why is he punching the ground?The ground isn't the enemy, Kal. Maybe you should focus your "Hulk SMASH!" desires on the guy who's trying to kill you? Yeah, jump on a guy holding a shardblade......greeaat idea.... Oh, and by the way, this is Kaladin. he is waaay cooler than the hulk. ;D Edited January 25, 2014 by Pinpoint
Awesomeness Summoned he/him Posted January 24, 2014 Posted January 24, 2014 Eh, the artist is very skilled and detailed, but the posing is still rather goofy, if improved. Why are all the corpses in one pile, and why in the world is Szeth standing on them? Is he a cat? Does he have an overwhelming urge to be on top of things? The only thing i can think that would make this a reasonable depiction is if Szeth just got finished lashing them all so they crashed into each other and were crushed under the weight. Then Szeth slammed down on top and finished off any of the survivors.
Maresia he/him Posted January 25, 2014 Posted January 25, 2014 (edited) I just wanted to do this, i love shallan in this book , and this is her book. Also the perfect "come at me bro" from little-thingy-scarab to Szeth Also a very poorly done shalarin moment Edited January 25, 2014 by Maresia 15
Awesomeness Summoned he/him Posted January 25, 2014 Posted January 25, 2014 That's some serious brainstorming Shallan has going on their. Nice edits
Pinpoint he/him Posted January 25, 2014 Posted January 25, 2014 (edited) Oh man, that cracks me up. It's like Szeth is saying, "Is this pose epic enough?" And then Shallan replies. "Oh yes that's perfect. But now I'm distracted by the dude with the glowing fist." meanwhile the soldier at the bottom of the pile groans "are we done yet? I'm suffocating down here!" That's awesome. Also, shouldn't it be Shaladin or Kalashin? you could call the first picture Shzelath, Shzalth or Szallan. Edited January 25, 2014 by Pinpoint 3
Maresia he/him Posted January 25, 2014 Posted January 25, 2014 Oh man, that cracks me up. It's like Szeth is saying, "Is this pose epic enough?" HAHAHA thats true!
PorridgeBrick he/him Posted January 25, 2014 Posted January 25, 2014 I love the Szeth one too. Can that be the new cover? Please, Brandon? *puppyspren eyes* you could call the first picture Shzelath, Shzalth or Szallan. SzethxShallan? That's a new one....But actually, I kinda like it, regardless of how much of a crack ship it is.
DocHoliday he/him Posted January 25, 2014 Posted January 25, 2014 We finally get to see the full HD glory of the cover on Tor. It looks for the most part exactly like the first except for the Kaladin stuff. It might be worth it to put both side-by-side and see if there were any changes to Szeth Son Son Vallano, Truthless of Shinovar. Edit: The only thing that pops out new to me is the insignia on the shield of Szeth's slain enemies. It looks like he's killed mostly Light-eyes, since the pile is full of fully armored folks and mostly swords. Can anyone make anything out of the shield, It looks like two X's surrounding.. an eye? WOR Shield.jpg That may be acc eye Rooster, but when I zoom in on it, it looks suspiciously like Aon Rao.
Windrunner he/him Posted January 25, 2014 Posted January 25, 2014 Peter answered that question on Twitter, it's the symbol of Michael Whelan, he inserts it somewhere into all of his covers.
DocHoliday he/him Posted January 25, 2014 Posted January 25, 2014 Peter answered that question on Twitter, it's the symbol of Michael Whelan, he inserts it somewhere into all of his covers. The Spirit of Whelan!
Delightful Posted January 25, 2014 Posted January 25, 2014 . you could call the first picture Shzelath, Shzalth or Szallan. You could call it that....but you'd have to *pronounce* it first . 2
Pinpoint he/him Posted January 25, 2014 Posted January 25, 2014 Aw man! I didn't know that was a requirement! I give up. Pronouncing that abomination of a name is beyond my skills. ;D I think it's pretty awesome that Whelan uses a symbol for his signature in paintings.
Kurkistan he/him Posted January 25, 2014 Posted January 25, 2014 On the shield: Apparently it's just a monogram from Whelan, not anything series-related.
Delightful Posted January 26, 2014 Posted January 26, 2014 I just noticed in the Shallan wallpaper, it looks like she's wearing a glove under a sleeve, instead of a properly buttoned safehand sleeve
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